M6:2978 — برد هم جنسی پریانش چنان / که رباید روح را زخم سنان

Translation: The fairies, by virtue of their like-kindness, carried him away / As a spear's wound snatches the soul from the body. Meaning: This verse illustrates how Abd al-Qaws, due to his inherent affinity and homogeneity with unseen beings (fairies), was suddenly and decisively pulled away from the material world towards them.

In this verse, Rumi employs a narrative event to articulate a deeper ontological truth. When he states, "The fairies, by virtue of their like-kindness, carried him away," this is not merely a poetic trope for occult abduction; rather, it points to the fundamental law of "homogeneity" (ham-jensī) that governs the cosmos. It implies that every being gravitates towards and unites with its own kind and essence. Abd al-Qaws, through his inherent affinity and homogeneity with the fairies, was drawn to a realm that resonated with his own nature.

This principle of "genus" or "kindredness" is among Rumi's most crucial insights. He clarifies it elsewhere (M6:2979): Since the dweller of paradise is of the genus of paradise / Through this like-kindness, he becomes a worshiper of God. We do not merely enter paradise; rather – and this is the crucial point – we become paradise itself. We transform into that very genus and essence. This holds true not only for the unseen world but also for time and space: we are not merely in time and space; we are temporality and spatiality. By analogy, Abd al-Qaws had become homogenous with these unseen beings, as if his essence had merged with theirs.

The pull of "like-kindness" is an intrinsic, existential force that operates beyond the reach of mundane reason or logic; just as a magnet draws iron, the soul is drawn towards its own kind. This is an irresistible attraction that ultimately leads to union.

The simile, "as a spear's wound snatches the soul from the body," though seemingly harsh and violent, underscores the suddenness, decisiveness, and irreversibility of this separation. The soul departs the body abruptly, without delay or resistance. This metaphor illustrates that when the pull of "like-kindness" occurs, the separation from the material world, however decisive, becomes inevitable and irreversible. There is no hesitancy or doubt in this departure; it is a sudden and complete liberation, like the soul leaping from the cage of the body. This separation, with all its decisiveness, stems not from external compulsion, but from an internal pull and an essential affinity with another realm.

Thus, this verse, on one hand, alludes to the law of "like-kindness" and intrinsic attraction, and on the other, vividly portrays the speed and finality of this transition from one world to another. Abd al-Qaws had returned to the world temporarily – as Rumi states, "he came as a loan" (āmad ow ham ʿāriya) – but the pull of the unseen realm and his homogeneity with the fairies irrevocably carried him away and returned him to his origin.

Key takeaways

• The law of "like-kindness" (ham-jensī) is the most fundamental attraction in the cosmos, calling every being towards its origin and essence.
• We do not merely enter paradise; we become paradise, meaning our existential essence merges with that of the unseen realm.
• Separation from the material world, when driven by the intrinsic pull of "like-kindness," is decisive and irreversible, like the soul's departure from the body.
• The intensity and swiftness of the soul's liberation from bodily confines in this verse signifies the finality of its union with its true origin, rather than violence.